Who will collar the strays dogs? BBMP shies away as Bengaluru NGO does the job
- 300 stray dogs now have reflective collars so that motorists can be warned
- The initiative should have been taken up by the BBMP but here it’s an NGO which is doing this
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As the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike has failed in curbing road traffic accidents involving stray dogs, Sarvodaya, an NGO has chipped in and has put reflective collars on some 300-odd Bengaluru stray dogs.
The birth control and animal welfare in Bengaluru is basically the job of the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike, but since they have failed in all these aspects, NGOs chip in every now and then. Be it vaccination, birth control and now reflective collars, BBMP's animal husbandry department has not risen to the occasion.
"The BBMP says it takes care of stray dog birth control but rest of the care like its rescue, rehabilitation and prevention from road accidents are taken care of by NGOs and animal lovers. As a part of our service, we have covered 300 stray dogs in the East zone. Each reflective collar cost Rs 50 and the cost is borne by animal lovers. It is purely a 'by public and for public project'," said Dr Akshay, Senior Veterinarian and Co-Founder, Sarvodaya, an NGO.
Many of the animal shelters across the City have reported that over 50 percent of road traffic accidents cases involved stray dogs. The cost of treatment was high and chances of survival minimal. Not to forget, there have many motorists who have had to swerve suddenly in order to avoid stray dogs on the road.
"These collars can help motorists detect the movement of strays during the night and in this manner we can avert such accidents. We want to cover more dogs but we are hit by a fund crunch. As and when we get supply of collars or funds, we will extend the reflective collar installation activity," said Vinay Morey, another member from Sarvodaya NGO.
However, there was not much response from BBMP which is actually the authority to take up any issue related to animal's rights, care and its rehabilitation. When Newsable called Dr Anand, Joint Director, BBMP Animal Husbandry Department, he replied, "I am not in office at present.”
